1. India launches official website of SCO 2023 with a theme of ‘For a SECURE SCO’
Tags: International News
The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) has launched the official website of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) with the theme of a SECURE SCO. The website will highlight the events that will be undertaken under the chairmanship of India next year.
During the 22nd Head of State summit meeting 2022 of the SCO at Samarkand, Uzbekistan in September, India formally received the SCO rotating presidency. India will hold the presidency of the grouping for a year until September 2023.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi had floated the concept of SECURE at the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit in China in 2018. Explaining the SECURE concept, the Prime Minister said ‘S’ for security for citizens, ‘E’ for economic development, ‘C’ for connectivity in the region, ‘U’ for unity, ‘R’ for respect of sovereignty and integrity, and ‘E' for environment protection.
The Shanghai Cooperation Organization is a regional group of 8 countries of Russia, China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, India and Pakistan .
2. Indonesian President Joko Widodo handed over the G-20 presidency to Modi as the G 20 summit concludes in Bali
Tags: place in news Summits
The Indonesian President Joko Widodo formally handed over the G-20 presidency to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 16 November 2022 at the conclusion of the two-day (15-16 November) 17th G-20 Summit in Bali.
Prime Minister Modi said that India's presidency will be inclusive, ambitious, decisive, and action-oriented. He said that the country is taking the charge at a time when the world is grappling with geopolitical tensions, economic slowdown and rising food and energy prices.
India will officially assume the G-20 Presidency from 1 December 2022.
The 18th G-20 Leaders' Summit at the level of heads of state/government is scheduled to be held on September 9-10, 2023 in New Delhi.
Modi also listed India's priorities for the G-20.
- Over the next one year, India will strive to ensure that the G-20 acts as a global prime mover to envision new ideas and accelerate collective action,"
- The sense of ownership over natural resources is giving rise to conflict today, and has become the main cause of the plight of the environment. For the safe future of the planet, the sense of trusteeship is the solution.
- Modi noted that LiFE that is a 'Lifestyle for Environment' campaign can make a big contribution to this. "Its purpose is to make sustainable lifestyles a mass movement." The prime minister emphasised that the benefits of development are universal and all-inclusive.
- Modi said the G-20 has to convey a strong message in favour of peace and harmony.
- "All these priorities are fully embodied in the theme of India's G-20 Chairmanship -- 'One Earth, One Family, One Future'," he said.
During the G-20 summit meeting the Prime Minister held meetings with various world leaders like British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, French President Macron, the American president Joe Biden and had a brief interaction with the Chinese President Xi Jingping. It was the first face to face between the Indian and Chinese leaders after the Galwan clash in June 2020 which led to the death of 20 Indian soldiers and many Chinese soldiers.
Issue of Russia and Ukraine and call for “This Era is not of War”
Russian President Vladimir Putin did not attended the meeting where the issue of Russia-Ukraine conflict divided the member countries of G-20. Western countries want an outright condemnation of Russia while others notably Indian and China are not in favour of condemning Russia.
However the final G-20 document which was issued later condemned “in the strongest terms the aggression by the Russian Federation against Ukraine” and demanded “its complete and unconditional withdrawal” from Ukrainian territory.
It also used the phrase “ This Era is not of War '' and called for an end to the war . This phrase was used by Prime Minister Modi while meeting Valdimir Putin during the SCO meeting in Uzbekistan in September 2022. The statement was well received in Europe, which regards India as a close strategic partner of Russia.
G-20 Group
- Group of 20 or G-20 is a multilateral organisation which was set up in 1999.
- It consists of the world's major developed and developing countries.
- It consists of 19 countries and the European Union. The member countries are Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, South Korea, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Turkey, United Kingdom, and United States.
- Italy was the President of the G-20 in 2021. Indonesia is the President for 2022 and India will be the President in 2023.
- The first Summit meeting of the leaders of the G-20 was held in 2008 at Washington, United States.
- The G20 has no permanent secretariat.
- G-20 members constitute 60% of the world population, 80% of the World economy and 75% of world trade.
3. SCO summit 2022 : India to host SCO summit next year
Tags: International Relations Summits International News
The SCO summit was held two years later in Samarkand, Uzbekistan on 15 and 16 September. The next meeting of the SCO Council of Heads of State will be held in 2023 in India.
Agenda of the summit :
The technological and digital divide, continued turbulence in global financial markets, instability in supply chains, increased protectionist measures and uncertainty in the global economy.
Member States also highlighted the impacts of global climate change and the COVID-19 pandemic, which have posed additional challenges to economic growth, social welfare and food security.
Samarkand Declaration :
The leaders of the member states of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) signed the Samarkand Declaration at a meeting of the Council of Heads of State.
The declaration states that the SCO will be headed by India for the next period.
In the declaration, the member states supported the efforts of the countries of the region to ensure prosperity, peace and sustainable development.
They advocated for strengthening the role of SCO in promoting stability and socio-economic development in the region.
IMPORTANT FACTS -
- The leaders stressed the need to adopt new approaches to promote more equitable and effective international cooperation and sustainable economic development.
Member States expressed deep concern over the security threat posed by terrorism, separatism and extremism and strongly condemned terrorist acts around the world.
They also resolved to take measures to contain the spread of terrorism, to eliminate terrorist financing channels.
They supported the establishment of Afghanistan as a free, neutral, united, democratic and peaceful state, free from terrorism, war and drugs.
Member States called for strengthening the effectiveness of the World Trade Organization as the principal forum for discussing the international trade agenda and adopting the rules of the multilateral trading system.
Member States have decided to set up an expert working group on start-ups and innovation, poverty reduction and traditional medicine.
PM Modi's participation in the Summit :
In the summit PM Modi said the Indian economy is expected to grow by 7.5 per cent this year and thus will be the highest among the largest economies in the world.
PM Modi holds bilateral talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin, Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION -
Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) :
It is a permanent intergovernmental international organization.
It was founded in 2001.
The SCO Charter was signed in 2002, and came into force in 2003.
It is a Eurasian political, economic and military organization.
Its aim is to maintain peace, security and stability in the region.
China, Russia and four Central Asian states – Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan – were founding members of the SCO.
Its members include China, Russia, India and Pakistan, as well as 4 Central Asian countries - Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan.
Official Languages - Russian and Chinese
Chairmanship - On the basis of rotation for a year by Member States
4. Varanasi to be first ‘Cultural and Tourism Capital’ of SCO
Tags: National News
Varanasi, the holy city that showcases India's culture and traditions for centuries, will be declared as the first "Cultural and Tourism Capital" of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO).
Important facts
Varanasi will become the "Cultural and Tourism Capital" of the SCO for 2022-23 under the eight-member organization's new initiative to promote people-to-people contact and tourism among member states.
Each year the city of cultural heritage of a member country that takes over the presidency of the organization will be given this title to highlight its prominence.
The new initiative will come into force after the Samarkand summit after which India will assume the presidency and host the next Heads of State Summit.
What is Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO)?
It is a permanent intergovernmental international organization.
It was founded in 2001.
The SCO Charter was signed in 2002, and came into force in 2003.
It is a Eurasian political, economic and military organization.
Its aim is to maintain peace, security and stability in the region.
China, Russia and four Central Asian states – Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan – were founding members of the SCO.
Official Languages - Russian and Chinese
Chairmanship - On the basis of rotation for a year by Member States
5. Quad Foreign Ministers Meeting
Tags: Popular International News
Australia hosted the third in- person foreign minister’s meeting of the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue also known as QUAD in Melbourne on 11 February 2022. Earlier in person foreifn ministers’ meetings were held in Tokyo in October 2020 and the inaugural meeting in New York in September 2019.
The Melbourne meeting was attended by the Indian Foreign Minister S. Jaishankar, US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken , Japanese Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi and the Australian Foreign Minister Marise Payn.
A joint statement was issued after the end of the meeting .The main highlights of the statement were as follows :
For the first time the QUAD mentions the terrorist incident of 2008 Mumbai attack of 26/11 and the attck on Pathankot air base 2016 and called for bringing the prepartotrs to justice .
The foreign ministers of India, Australia, Japan and the US reviewed the Quad Vaccine Partnership, which was launched in March last year, during their meeting in Melbourne. The partnership envisages the production of at least 1 billion doses of US-developed vaccines in India with American and Japanese funding.
Indian company Biological E is producing corona vaccine developed by U.S Texas Children’s Hospital scientists Drs Peter Hotez and . Maria Bottazzi. The vaccine is called Corbevax. This vaccine will be supplied to poor countries through Quad Vaccine Partnership.
Australia will hold an Indo-Pacific Clean Energy Supply Chain Forum meeting in mid-2022 to establish responsible and resilient clean-energy supply chains
QUAD
Quad or Quadrilateral Security Dialogue is a group of four countries US, Japan, Australia and India. The concept of QUAD was given by Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in 2007 for maritime cooperation between these countries after the Indian ocean Tsunami disaster in 2004.
Now the group is mainly seen as a group to counter the Chinese influence in the region .
The first virtual summit meeting of the leader of QUAD was held in March 2021.
The First in person summit meeting of the leaders of the four countries was held by the United States in September 2021 in Washington attended by the Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga
The next summit meeting will be held in Japan in 2022.
